March 26, 2010

Here's how 3 of us were dressed yesterday. Jon and I wore our UNI shirts too, I just don't have photographic evidence of that. And I'm happy to say that we're still full of Panther Pride around here, even after those stupid Spartans.

On a related note, I completely mortified Ellie yesterday. I was singing the fight song all morning, and as I dropped them off at school (along with a neighbor girl), I offered to sing it to them one more time. They graciously said "no thanks", but then I saw a teacher who went to UNI. I told the kids he'd like to hear it, and proceeded to roll down the windows. Ellie said "Mom!" frantically, and with quite a few syllables. Like I'm the kind of person who sings the fight song to relative strangers. But she can keep thinking I am!

March 25, 2010

I took the kids to Jon's office this evening so I could get my haircut. This is what happens when I'm not around.

March 24, 2010

Rowan would like to play outside all day, everyday. I would not. So here's our compromise. He plays on the deck while I'm in the kitchen. We'd both like a fenced in yard.

March 23, 2010

The real use for the totes I bought. It's that time of year again, where we start to have huge stacks to take to the farm.

March 22, 2010

Use #1 for the new totes I bought.

March 21, 2010

He is a very helpful boy. (Rowan, that is. Well, Jon is too I guess.)

March 20, 2010

I very rarely take picture of the tv, although recent posts indicate otherwise. But I dare you to look at this one and not start singing the fight song. And in case you live under a rock, that says No Iowa 69, Kansas 67. (That's right. Kansas. The team people picked to win it all.)

March 19, 2010

On Friday morning we went to Phelps Youth Pavilion. It was far more crowded than last year, so we didn't stay as long, but we still had fun.

The always popular with our boys "Drive a tractor through a Grant Wood painting":

Rowan in the house he built:

Proof Conor had fun in three steps:

1. He put the wig on more than once.

2. He let me take a picture, and waited for me to take the picture.

3. He has a genuine smile in the picture.

Ellie doing a cartwheel on stage:

And then here's what we came home to. This was early in the day too. We ended up with a lot more.

March 18, 2010

We went to McDonald's for lunch, and played in the playland for a minute or two.

It was too crowded, so we went to the best park ever! No, cowboy boots don't affect your ability to climb at all.

Ellie and Grandma on Grandma's bench.

R: One, two, three, Super Rowie. (Rowan falls.)
Me: (Snort) Are you okay?

R: I'm okay. One, two, three, Super Rowie.

March 17, 2010

The back parking lot at Brown Bottle. Fortunately they were still open for business!

March 16, 2010

On the Tuesday of Spring Break, Jon and Rowan stayed home while the big kids and I did some shopping for First Communion. I wasn't looking forward to it, because well, you try shopping with Conor. And the morning was bad - really, unproductively bad. But then we had lunch, and found everything we'd been looking for plus some. And really, once Conor tried on a suit, he was all about shopping for them.

March 15, 2010

Check out this long hair!

March 14, 2010

Cute. And he knows it.

March 13, 2010

So, size 6x still fits around the waist, but...

March 12, 2010

Rowan's breakfast: a poptart and instant breakfast. Do you want to know how old C and E were before they'd even heard of either of those??

March 11, 2010

These are some of the guys that we see anytime Rowan gets to pick a show. They are far, far better than Thomas, so I will refrain from mocking them in any way.

March 10, 2010

Basketball is over, and spring football doesn't start until the end of April. Normally, I'd say the kid needs a break, but when everyone else is playing baseball, he needs to have something. Or maybe we need him to have something. So Conor is in "Gladiator Boys" at the gym. And he won the arm hang contest on his first night.

March 9, 2010

What's that? I haven't updated the blog lately? Here's why. (It's tax season, you know. That means I actually get paid a little bit).

March 8, 2010

Some days are so nice and sunny and springy that you just have to go to Sonic after school for a Blast.

March 7, 2010

I'm pretty sure he's the luckiest 2.5 year old in the world.

March 6, 2010

Sometimes you get asked to take a picture of what seems not so important, and because you haven't taken a picture that day, you do it.

March 5, 2010

I am happy to say that our front yard no longer looks like this!

March 4, 2010

Every other week or so Rowan and I go to gymnastics. The gym Ellie goes to has "Parent and Tot" time twice a week. It's an hour that we can play with almost whatever we want to in the gym. The first time we went, he whined the whole way there and told me on the way into the gym "I don't want to do gymnastics!". Then he discovered "the pit". It's that foam cube filled hole in the floor. Conor and Ellie used to carefully slide into it to play. Rowan counts to either 3 or 10 (it depends on the day, I guess) then hurls himself in.

Today he walked across it on a beam. (Editorial comment: Conor would still need to hold my hand to do so). He also discovered the big trampoline and the big balls, but at the end of the hour, he thanked me and told me he still liked the pit best. So if you want something to do on Monday or Thursday mornings, let me know!




PS - Happy anniversary Jon!

March 3, 2010

Um, using his "tool" to find his hat. Duh.

March 2, 2010

This guy is still around. He doesn't sleep with Conor anymore though. Conor decided on his own that Andy made him suck his thumb, and since he's trying to stop, Andy can't sleep with him.

(Go ahead and cry a little bit. I did. And there are times when a little thumb sucking crabbiness relief would serve us well.)

March 1, 2010

Using the shoe horn, of course.

February 28, 2010

The braids came out. I thought she'd be sad to see them go, but she was okay with it. I don't know whether that's because she knew Jaden didn't have hers in anymore, or because she wanted to see what her hair looked like. She was pretty sure it would be much longer than she remembered it!

February 27, 2010

Here's a fun game at our house. (And I'm not being sarcastic, really!) Someone has Rowan's broom, someone has the dustmop, and someone has a wet paper towel. Then you clean the kitchen floor. All three love to play it, but just not when I suggest it.

February 26, 2010

Have I ever shown you these? One day (last fall, I think), Ellie went to play at a friend's house. She came home with a bag full of hand me downs, including these. Actually, I think these came home on her feet. Until it started snowing, she wore them every day except PE day. They had a break for icky weather, but they've come out again. They looked brand new when we got them. Not so much anymore.

One day she told me, "People keep asking my why I wear them all the time." I asked what she told them. She said "I just tell them, 'Wouldn't you?'"

February 25, 2010

Ellie would love to be a teacher. Unfortunately, unless you have lots of snacks, 2 year olds don't like to play that for long.

February 24, 2010

I didn't quite catch it in the picture, but he's using an old truck of Conor's to haul an older truck of Jon's.

February 23, 2010

Conor and Ellie don't have spelling tests. Our district uses a program called "Words Their Way". I don't understand it, but it involves a lot of sorting of words. So there's no studying for tests, but no Hardee's biscuits either.

February 22, 2010

A good portion of gymnastics is social time for Ellie. (When is not social time for Ellie?) She does a lot of dancing and chit-chatting.

February 21, 2010

So you stand on the couch and throw the squares onto the hot lava. Wherever they land is where they stay, and if they land upside down, you can't use them. Then you try to get to the other couch. Without touching the lava, of course.

February 20, 2010

In an effort to stop this one's boredom, we got out the Cat's Cradle book. She still gets a little frustrated, and we haven't even tried the game, but she does have a few figures she can do!

February 19, 2010

When the big kids are in school, Rowan gets to use a booster and sit in a big chair for lunch.

February 18, 2010

Ellie and the neighbor girls were playing house with Rowan. Ellie was the mom. She was 21, and had a 19 year old, a toddler, and was pregnant with another, with whom she could communicate. She thought this outfit was appropriate. I think it explains a lot!